kenberg Posted February 10, 2011 Report Share Posted February 10, 2011 This will only appeal to mathematicians: The University gives a mathematics competition for high school students. The first round is a flock of mostly but not entirely straightforward problems. We take the best fifty or so and invite them to take the second round where the problems are tougher. Back when I was involved with this we gave a problem involving a checkerboard. One kid's solution began "Consider a checkerboard as a free abelian group on 64 generators..." His solution was correct. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winstonm Posted February 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 This will only appeal to mathematicians: The University gives a mathematics competition for high school students. The first round is a flock of mostly but not entirely straightforward problems. We take the best fifty or so and invite them to take the second round where the problems are tougher. Back when I was involved with this we gave a problem involving a checkerboard. One kid's solution began "Consider a checkerboard as a free abelian group on 64 generators..." His solution was correct. That must have really pissed off the first 63 generations of Free Abelians. B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mycroft Posted February 11, 2011 Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 I'm sorry, but if anybody can build a square out of any number of checkers, they're not using the same sets I grew up with. I find mine always tend to have those wavy edges that my drafting teacher tended to mark down as "don't freehand, use a ruler." I'm sorry, couldn't resist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PassedOut Posted February 11, 2011 Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 I'm sorry, but if anybody can build a square out of any number of checkers, they're not using the same sets I grew up with. I find mine always tend to have those wavy edges that my drafting teacher tended to mark down as "don't freehand, use a ruler." I'm sorry, couldn't resist.You rich kids! When I was a kid we had to make our own checkers, and it was easiest to make them square. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winstonm Posted February 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2011 You rich kids! When I was a kid we had to make our own checkers, and it was easiest to make them square. Luxury! We had to get up three hours before we went to bed, hue checkers from the bones of our own legs, then walk barefooot miles and miles in 12 foot drifts of snow on top of furnace grates until the soles of our feet were crisscrossed enough from the char to be used as a checkboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matmat Posted February 14, 2011 Report Share Posted February 14, 2011 Luxury! We had to get up three hours before we went to bed, hue checkers from the bones of our own legs, then walk barefooot miles and miles in 12 foot drifts of snow on top of furnace grates until the soles of our feet were crisscrossed enough from the char to be used as a checkboard. Up next, the dead parrot sketch. I hate math. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winstonm Posted February 15, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2011 Up next, the dead parrot sketch. I hate math. I don't blame you. Me, I always wanted to be a lumberjack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenberg Posted February 15, 2011 Report Share Posted February 15, 2011 I don't blame you. Me, I always wanted to be a lumberjack. In high school they gave us the Kuder Preference Test to see what careers we are psychologically suited for. Letter grades were assigned. For mathematics I got a C minus. This amused me greatly. Recommended careers were aviation and farming. Mostly I think the test accurately diagnosed me as being a somewhat confused seventeen year old male. On the other hand, I once took an intelligence test that recommended I consider semi-skilled labor as a career choice. So maybe a semi-skilled pilot of a crop duster. That could explain the plane crash in North by Northwest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winstonm Posted February 15, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2011 In high school they gave us the Kuder Preference Test to see what careers we are psychologically suited for. Letter grades were assigned. For mathematics I got a C minus. This amused me greatly. Recommended careers were aviation and farming. Mostly I think the test accurately diagnosed me as being a somewhat confused seventeen year old male. On the other hand, I once took an intelligence test that recommended I consider semi-skilled labor as a career choice. So maybe a semi-skilled pilot of a crop duster. That could explain the plane crash in North by Northwest. I took one of those tests once upon a great time ago - but I don't remember the results. However, I did take a state-sponsored vocational test which said I could be anything except a brain surgeon, as I didn't have the small-muscle dexterity for the job. So I got a job cracking open small mussels with dexterity. It didn't pay as much as brain surgery but you got to eat for free - if you can call that eating. This has noting to do with math except that I couldn't do that, either, and it didn't seem to have anyting to do with small muscles, small mussels, or dexterity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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